A DOG owner had to pay more than �2,300 for her pet to have an operation after it swallowed fishing line while walking on a Suffolk beach.

Elliot Furniss

A DOG owner had to pay more than �2,300 for her pet to have an operation after it swallowed fishing line while walking on a Suffolk beach.

Kelly Bryenton has urged all sea anglers to be mindful of leaving excess line on beaches as it can pose a danger to all animals.

Mrs Bryenton, 37, works part time at Aldeburgh Yacht Club and she often allows her 14-year-old Labrador Smartie to roam along the nearby coastline.

She said that while she was working one day late last month (24/4), Smartie had come back to her office with a length of line dangling from her mouth, and despite her best efforts she could not pull it free.

She and her husband Andrew, who is the chief boatman at the club, took the dog to the vets and they were referred to a specialist clinic in Newmarket where an operation was carried out.

During the operation it emerged that Smartie had a paralysed larynx, a problem which was also addressed by the vets.

The total bill was �2,302 but Mrs Bryenton said it was a small price to pay for her beloved pet.

Mrs Bryenton said: “I just want to make a plea to fishermen to take their rubbish home with them.

“I know some people would say 'don't let your dog wander' but they should still take their rubbish home.

“There has recently been a big beach clean-up in Aldeburgh, so people are concerned about the wellbeing of animals.

“Not everyone is the same, but there is the odd one or two who don't give a damn and leave their rubbish around.”

She said Smartie was now recovering “remarkably well” at home and she was just thankful there had not been a hook attached to the line, which is now kept in a plastic tube as a souvenir of her ordeal.

Alan Brothers, a member of the Angling Trust's Marine Committee, said 99.9% of sea fishermen were very mindful about leaving rubbish on beaches and pocketing lengths of unwanted line.

He said: “I'm sorry to hear about this lady's dog. We urge all anglers - members and non members - not to litter and they are very much aware of that.

“Anglers realise that other people are using the sea and the beach as well as themselves and the vast majority do behave themselves and don't leave litter.

“They do get blamed for a lot of rubbish which is not theirs anyway and I think 99.9% are very careful.”